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Every month on this blog, I share my professional views and ongoing learning about life, change and relationships.
These posts are my personal reflections that offer tips and guidance for people looking to live their best lives possible.
Second Place is Absolutely Fantastic
I am not a soccer fan but every four years my family watches the World Cup. I was in Mexico City for the final game in December. Like many people around the world, my family sat together to watch. France and Argentina played a fantastic and very close game. The decision came down to penalties, which is really more about chance than talent. Both teams were excellent. We watched the trophy...
Communication is Key: 6 Tools for Good Communication
We need positive connections with others in order to feel happy and fulfilled, but relationships can be complicated. How can we improve our personal and professional relationships? Communication is key. As a leadership and communication coach I spend my days exploring the many different tools we have to better communicate with others. Good communication can be learned and adapted to our...
Change is a Certainty
Uncertainty and change will continue in 2023. I can promise that two things will happen in all of our lives. We will die and we will have to deal with change. Change is part of our lives. For many of us, change is uncomfortable. I had an amazing discussion with one of my clients recently. We talked about howChange is the counterbalance to uncertaintyThis is a powerful and...
A Fine Balance
As a leadership coach with hundreds of clients I often hear people express similar goals. One of them is the very familiar desire to achieve work-life balance. We have all heard it, we talk about it, people need it, but what does it really mean? How do we create it? I remember a conversation with a client many years ago about this. Mandy (not her real name) was a successful executive with small...
Run Towards Your Goals
There is a lot we can learn from a 10K run. Let me share with you my small and imperfect win of the summer. It has helped me to reflect on life and what we can all do to support our goals. I ran 10K for the first time in my life at the age of 53! I know that for many people this wouldn’t be much of an accomplishment, but for me it was a very important one. As I trained for it I reflected on...
Beautiful Renewal
Spring is my favourite season. It brings with it a feeling of renewal and the promise of new beginnings. I am always amazed by nature and its ability to renew itself over and over again. The grass looks dead and the trees have no leaves but then with some sun and rain, it all starts coming alive again. Walking outside becomes a magical time of change and colour. This spring it's most welcome....
A Fine Balance
Despite my hopes, January 2022 looks a lot like January 2021. It feels like we are stuck in the same place with many things still out of our control. COVID cases are on the rise. Restaurants, gyms and movie theaters are closed. For me, the lack of control is difficult and I am longing for a real connection with others. To counter these feelings I am focusing on the importance of one word. A word...
Would You Rather Be Smart Or Be Right?
I recently spoke with a client about the idea that it is better to be smart than to be right. Understanding the difference can bring a new perspective into our lives and our relationships. Being right: Is about proving that you know best and that your position is the correct one. Is about choosing to focus on the fact that you are right regardless of whether that will result in the best...
Communication is Key: 6 Tools for Good Communication
We need positive connections with others in order to feel happy and fulfilled, but relationships can be complicated. How can we improve our personal and professional relationships? Communication is key. As a leadership and communication coach I spend my days exploring the many different tools we have to better communicate with others. Good communication can be learned and adapted to our...
Moments of Clarity
I've had many moments of clarity over the past few months. One of them has to do with connections. During the pandemic I missed connecting with others. As the world returns to normal I find myself awestruck by small things that I took for granted before, like enjoying a meal at a restaurant, going to a concert or inviting friends over for dinner. This feeling is a true testament to the...
The Power of Words
Words are powerful. They help us communicate with others and they create an impact. Words that we use internally are just as powerful as words that we say out loud when it comes to how we feel and how we perceive our reality. What are the words that you use most often? FOUR FAVOURITE WORDS As a coach, I have spent thousands of hours in conversations with clients. I often hear these words:...
Accepting Help: Just Say “Thank you!”
Why do we so often respond to someone doing something for us by telling them that they shouldn’t have bothered or that it wasn’t necessary? My grandmother Sarita, one of the wisest people I have ever known, would get upset if you gave one of these polite responses when she did something for you or gave you something. She would tell you to simply thank her or tell her that you appreciate it. I...
Asking for Help
It should be easy. Why wouldn’t we ask for help? We constantly help others. We have different strengths and we know that we can learn from those around us. We have our friends, family, colleagues and community. And yet, somehow, my clients often say “I don’t like asking for help” or “I should be able to do this on my own” or “I don’t need to ask, they should know”. Why is it so hard to ask for...
BE THE CATALYST FOR CHANGE:
HOW TO BETTER COMMUNICATE FOR STRONGER RELATIONSHIPS How we interact and feel in our personal and professional relationships is an essential predictor of our fulfilment and well being. Find the courage to change the things you can control in your relationships. You can be the leader and a catalyst of positive change. How we interact and feel in our personal and professional relationships...
Role Playing
We all play roles in our lives. Are you aware of them? Which roles have you adopted in your professional and personal relationships? The dictionary defines a role as a “function assumed or part played by a person in a particular situation,” but roles are much more than this. We may not even be aware of many of the roles that we play and it might be time to change them. Like relationships,...
The Importance of Connection
The Lonely Planet We have all heard so much about the pandemic and its horrible consequences. The isolation, economic hardships, illnesses and deaths have touched every part of the world. In Canada, where I live, you can feel the heaviness that this year of uncertainty and long winter are having on people. But do you know the number one health crisis in North America today? Covid, cancer,...
Second Place is Absolutely Fantastic
I am not a soccer fan but every four years my family watches the World Cup. I was in Mexico City for the final game in December. Like many people around the world, my family sat together to watch. France and Argentina played a fantastic and very close game. The decision came down to penalties, which is really more about chance than talent. Both teams were excellent. We watched the trophy...
Run Towards Your Goals
There is a lot we can learn from a 10K run. Let me share with you my small and imperfect win of the summer. It has helped me to reflect on life and what we can all do to support our goals. I ran 10K for the first time in my life at the age of 53! I know that for many people this wouldn’t be much of an accomplishment, but for me it was a very important one. As I trained for it I reflected on...
The River of Life
Life is like a river. What do a rollercoaster and a river have in common? I am always learning and gaining new perspectives. Recently one of my clients was describing a rollercoaster of emotions and we realized together that this is not the best metaphor. Why is it so hard to change our habits? How do we deal with the constant challenges and changes of life? Is life like riding a rollercoaster?...
Stop Setting Goals: Do Something More Important First
Goals aren't enough on their own. Every year at this time, my clients tell me about the goals that their companies organizations are working on for the upcoming year and the resolutions that everyone is making. Goals are important. They help us connect to our vision, and, if done correctly, they can help us stay on track and measure our actions. I believe, however, that there is a crucial...
Can You Be Your Own Best Friend?
Who is your best friend? Is it your partner, parent, sibling, long-time friend? My best friend is myself! Does that sound selfish and ridiculous? I constantly write and teach on the importance of having strong relationships with others in order to have a happier and more fulfilled life. Today I want to share that the most important relationship that we have is the relationship we...
What’s Your Word?
What if ONE WORD could help us make everyday choices more easily? Even though the choices we make each day are so varied and under many different circumstances, I believe it’s possible to have one word or phrase to guide us. Allow me to explain. To make good choices, we need to first trust our instincts and understand ourselves. We need a true sense of our values and be clear about what we want...
The Power of Positivity
Relationships are fascinating and they can be difficult. I am reminded of this often as my family and I spend more time together in our home during the pandemic. We pass from being kind and joyful with each other to expressing frustration, anger and impatience. Most families are likely feeling the same. In one of these ‘crisis moments’ I was reminded of the concept of the positivity...
New Video Series
Physical Isolation - A Time of Personal Growth This is a series of 60-second videos that offers tips and guidance on how to take this time to focus on the things that matter to you and to help you develop better insights into what makes you happy. I'm sharing these videos on Facebook, Instagram and my YouTube Channel, as well as posting them here on my blog, so you have lots of ways to follow...
Second Place is Absolutely Fantastic
I am not a soccer fan but every four years my family watches the World Cup. I was in Mexico City for the final game in December. Like many people around the world, my family sat together to watch. France and Argentina played a fantastic and very close game. The decision came down to penalties, which is really more about chance than talent. Both teams were excellent. We watched the trophy...
Change is a Certainty
Uncertainty and change will continue in 2023. I can promise that two things will happen in all of our lives. We will die and we will have to deal with change. Change is part of our lives. For many of us, change is uncomfortable. I had an amazing discussion with one of my clients recently. We talked about howChange is the counterbalance to uncertaintyThis is a powerful and...
A Fine Balance
As a leadership coach with hundreds of clients I often hear people express similar goals. One of them is the very familiar desire to achieve work-life balance. We have all heard it, we talk about it, people need it, but what does it really mean? How do we create it? I remember a conversation with a client many years ago about this. Mandy (not her real name) was a successful executive with small...
Run Towards Your Goals
There is a lot we can learn from a 10K run. Let me share with you my small and imperfect win of the summer. It has helped me to reflect on life and what we can all do to support our goals. I ran 10K for the first time in my life at the age of 53! I know that for many people this wouldn’t be much of an accomplishment, but for me it was a very important one. As I trained for it I reflected on...
The Power of Words
Words are powerful. They help us communicate with others and they create an impact. Words that we use internally are just as powerful as words that we say out loud when it comes to how we feel and how we perceive our reality. What are the words that you use most often? FOUR FAVOURITE WORDS As a coach, I have spent thousands of hours in conversations with clients. I often hear these words:...
The Endless Cycle of Never Enough
Recent conversations with my clients have reminded me of the complexities of our everyday lives. There are endless roles to be executed and things to be done, and we all have too many priorities and not enough time. It can leave us feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. In addition to this, we are faced with having to ‘succeed’ (whatever that means) and feel fulfilled while constantly being on the...
Accepting Help: Just Say “Thank you!”
Why do we so often respond to someone doing something for us by telling them that they shouldn’t have bothered or that it wasn’t necessary? My grandmother Sarita, one of the wisest people I have ever known, would get upset if you gave one of these polite responses when she did something for you or gave you something. She would tell you to simply thank her or tell her that you appreciate it. I...
Stop Setting Goals: Do Something More Important First
Goals aren't enough on their own. Every year at this time, my clients tell me about the goals that their companies organizations are working on for the upcoming year and the resolutions that everyone is making. Goals are important. They help us connect to our vision, and, if done correctly, they can help us stay on track and measure our actions. I believe, however, that there is a crucial...
A Fine Balance
As a leadership coach with hundreds of clients I often hear people express similar goals. One of them is the very familiar desire to achieve work-life balance. We have all heard it, we talk about it, people need it, but what does it really mean? How do we create it? I remember a conversation with a client many years ago about this. Mandy (not her real name) was a successful executive with small...
The River of Life
Life is like a river. What do a rollercoaster and a river have in common? I am always learning and gaining new perspectives. Recently one of my clients was describing a rollercoaster of emotions and we realized together that this is not the best metaphor. Why is it so hard to change our habits? How do we deal with the constant challenges and changes of life? Is life like riding a rollercoaster?...
The Endless Cycle of Never Enough
Recent conversations with my clients have reminded me of the complexities of our everyday lives. There are endless roles to be executed and things to be done, and we all have too many priorities and not enough time. It can leave us feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. In addition to this, we are faced with having to ‘succeed’ (whatever that means) and feel fulfilled while constantly being on the...
Accepting Help: Just Say “Thank you!”
Why do we so often respond to someone doing something for us by telling them that they shouldn’t have bothered or that it wasn’t necessary? My grandmother Sarita, one of the wisest people I have ever known, would get upset if you gave one of these polite responses when she did something for you or gave you something. She would tell you to simply thank her or tell her that you appreciate it. I...
Stop Setting Goals: Do Something More Important First
Goals aren't enough on their own. Every year at this time, my clients tell me about the goals that their companies organizations are working on for the upcoming year and the resolutions that everyone is making. Goals are important. They help us connect to our vision, and, if done correctly, they can help us stay on track and measure our actions. I believe, however, that there is a crucial...
Asking for Help
It should be easy. Why wouldn’t we ask for help? We constantly help others. We have different strengths and we know that we can learn from those around us. We have our friends, family, colleagues and community. And yet, somehow, my clients often say “I don’t like asking for help” or “I should be able to do this on my own” or “I don’t need to ask, they should know”. Why is it so hard to ask for...
Time for Change
Choose changes aligned with what truly matters to you.I like to think of September as an opportunity each year to stop and reflect on where we are, what we have accomplished so far and what changes we might want to make going forward. We make many daily choices in our lives that create our journey. If we don’t stop and reflect, we can’t make choices based on what is important to us. Change is...
Negative Emotions: Can Positivity Be Toxic?
Negative emotions are actually vital to our happiness and wellbeing. Life is a complicated, challenging, amazing and fulfilling journey. The pandemic has certainly shown us how uncertain life can be. The idea that we are supposed to have a happy and fulfilling life has become a sort of cultural movement during the past few years that in many cases has been taken to the extreme. Instead of...
Reinvent Yourself
The start of September and the return to routines makes us realize how quickly the year has gone by. Every year I write about how this is an invitation to think about our goals and what we have or have not accomplished. I believe that this is a moment for introspection. Nature brings change. Life brings constant change. I am really feeling these changes in my personal life this month. After 25...
Time for Change
Choose changes aligned with what truly matters to you.I like to think of September as an opportunity each year to stop and reflect on where we are, what we have accomplished so far and what changes we might want to make going forward. We make many daily choices in our lives that create our journey. If we don’t stop and reflect, we can’t make choices based on what is important to us. Change is...
Personal Growth is a Life-Long Journey
Early in my coaching career, I came to an important realization: Personal growth never stops. Stepping outside of our comfort zones, adapting to ongoing changes, and learning new things; It’s ongoing and it’s hard work. Life by definition is challenging. Even though we may wish someone else could do the hard work of learning, adapting and growing, it’s only up to us. After all, only we...
Turn off the “Should” to get to what you “Want”
A few weeks ago, the world lost a special human being. This beautiful soul was a client of mine for the past year. Every two weeks, we would get together to chat. Our discussions often centered around his special philosophy of life or his worries about the future, but the one thing we regularly discussed is something I think many of us struggle with: what we believe we should do versus what we...
New Season, New Intentions
Like many people, I tend to view September as a second new year. It’s when most of us return to routines after a less-structured summer and we get the chance to refocus on new (or revised) goals for the rest of the year. If you happened to make New Year’s resolutions in January—or set some new intentions for yourself—hopefully, a few of them stuck and have become a reality. If you are like most...
Your legacy begins today
As we approach the end of the year, it’s a great time for introspection. Many of us will start thinking about plans and resolutions for the New Year. Instead of debating whether this practice is a good idea or not, I invite you to try a different kind of reflection instead. Think about the legacy you want to leave behind when you die. Have you ever considered what your obituary would say? I...
Let Nature Be Your Guide
As nature blooms all around us, I encourage you to pay attention to its lesson about constant change and constant renewal. Our lives are always changing, that is constant, and it’s up to us on how we use this change to renew ourselves…
Why You Should Fail Spectacularly
Just a few weeks ago my daughter and I were stranded in a hotel room during an unexpected ice storm. With no place to go, we sat together and rewatched The Last Word. In the movie, a young woman hates her job but is too afraid to make a change. The older main character, who is dying, advises her to “fail spectacularly”: “You don’t make mistakes. Mistakes make you. They make you smarter. They...